Villarreal remain on the edges of the top-four battle thanks to a run of four wins in six games heading into this one, and they had the chance to close the gap to Athletic Club in the final UEFA Champions League qualification spot to just one point here, albeit with the Basque side still to play on Sunday. They were heavy favourites against 19th-placed Valencia, who despite three wins in their past four fixtures came into this match still in the bottom three.
The first shot of the game came from Luis Rioja, whose shot flew over the crossbar from distance inside the first five minutes. That was the theme for the majority of the opening period, as both teams appeared to have left their shooting boots at home.
Diego Conde made one simple save, while Giorgi Mamardashvili made two, but a moment of magic from Pape Gueye provided the only goal of the first 45 minutes.
As the ball came his way on the edge of the box, he fired a fierce shot into the far corner, with Mamardashvili unable to get anywhere near it.
After the interval, the hosts went in search of a second goal to give themselves extra breathing space. The best early opportunities fell to Alex Baena and Santi Comesana, but neither could trouble Mamardashvili between the sticks, and while Nicolas Pepe did get a shot on target shortly before being replaced, his low drive was pushed away from goal.
The Ivory Coast international did have the ball in the back of the net seconds later, but Tajan Buchanan was in an offside position in the build-up.
With Valencia unable to put the Yellow Submarine under any sustained pressure, it looked as though the home side would hold on for the win. However, shortly after Pepelu had shot not far past the post, the away team netted a crucial goal.
Substitutes Rafa Mir and Umar Sadiq were both involved, as the former’s shot was initially saved by Conde before the latter headed in the rebound.
That proved to be the final decisive moment in this encounter as the two teams needed to make do with a share of the spoils.
While Valencia are still without a win in 12 away matches, this point sees them move level on points with Las Palmas outside the relegation zone. Villarreal, on the other hand, will be disappointed by the outcome, and they must dust themselves down ahead of a big clash in the race for European football against Rayo Vallecano next weekend.
Flashscore Man of the Match: Pape Gueye (Villarreal)